


Honesty

by Thevoidbetweenus



Series: Naruto Rarepair Week 2020 [4]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Angst, Brief Mention of Blood, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Izuna is trying, M/M, Naruto RarePair Week 2020, Not Beta Read, Tobirama is oblivious, Uchiha Izuna Lives, Very brief suicide idealization, soulmates can't lie to each other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-06
Updated: 2020-05-06
Packaged: 2021-03-02 17:35:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,991
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24040672
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Thevoidbetweenus/pseuds/Thevoidbetweenus
Summary: Tobirama tells Hashirama he'd rather die than have an Uchiha as a soulmate.Izuna acts rather strangely around him, after that.
Relationships: (second pairing is a side pairing), Senju Hashirama/Uchiha Madara, Senju Tobirama/Uchiha Izuna
Series: Naruto Rarepair Week 2020 [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1731286
Comments: 25
Kudos: 313





	Honesty

**Author's Note:**

> Hi everyone! This is to fulfill day four of Naruto Rarepair Week 2020, Soulmate AU (my favorite, so of course I went hard).
> 
> I hope you enjoy, and thanks for reading!

“Anija, I know you might be more forgiving towards the Uchiha because you’ve got one for a soulmate, but I don’t.” Tobirama slams his palms on Hashirama’s desk, glaring at his elder brother. “They are useful as a police force and nothing more. You really must stop romanticizing their role in the foundation of this village.”

Hashirama sighs heavily, meeting his brother’s gaze with a weary expression. “Perhaps you are the one who doesn’t really see,” he counters. “Because they did have a part in it. Madara and Izuna certainly. Tobirama, if you _did_ have an Uchiha soulmate, maybe you’d feel differently. Maybe not. But that’s not the reason I feel the way that I do about them. I simply understand that they are an important facet of this village.” 

Tobirama sneers. “I would rather die than have an Uchiha has a soulmate.” He lifts his hands, opting to cross his arms instead. “Continue to be an idealist. I’ll continue to be a realist in the Hokage’s stead.”

Hashirama rubs his temples. “You should be more careful with your words,” he says. “Just go, Tobirama. I can sort this paperwork out myself.” 

Tobirama eyes him suspiciously. “Since when have you volunteered to do paperwork?”

“Since now,” his brother replies, waving him off. “Just go, please. I have much to think about.” 

Not used to such dismissal, Tobirama haughtily stalks out of the room to his own office. He thinks little of it when he nearly collides with Izuna Uchiha on his way out, shooting the man his usual glare and moving on. 

* * *

Izuna is avoiding him. Tobirama knows he should be relieved to have a reprieve from the constant pestering and pranks, but it sits wrong with him. What had caused this shift in behavior?

He’s determined to find out, and that is how he finds himself in the Uchiha’s office in the Hokage tower. “What is wrong with you, Uchiha?” He opens with, and a strangled expression crosses Izuna’s face. 

“There’s a lot wrong with me, Senju,” he replies rather vaguely, twirling a pen in his fingers. “You’ll have to be more specific.” 

“You’re avoiding me.”

“How fascinating that you noticed. I figured you would be pleased by my efforts to make peace.”

“You’re not making peace, you’re up to something,” Tobirama accuses, eyes narrowed. “You’re _always_ up to something.”

Rather than getting angry as Tobirama expects, Izuna seems to deflate, shoulders slumping. He stares down at his desk. “I’m not up to anything but trying to stop causing trouble,” he mutters.

The Senju stares at him. “What caused this sudden change in behavior?”

Izuna squirms in his seat, profoundly uncomfortable under the other man’s gaze. Tobirama isn’t sure why, but he’s reminded of the fact that soulmates can’t lie to each other. But this is _Izuna,_ not his soulmate, so he brushes the thought away. There’s surely another explanation for this strange behavior. Perhaps he’s thinking of betraying the village and Tobirama has caught him in the act. 

“I overheard you talking to Hashirama the other day,” Izuna practically whispered, face crumpling into a grimace. “About how you’d rather die than have an Uchiha as a soulmate. You really meant that, huh?” He asks. 

Tobirama pauses for a moment. “You heard that?”

“Just answer the question.”

As much as Tobirama wants to deny it in the moment (which is strange, really - why should he want to deny it anyway), he can’t help but say “yes, I meant it.”

The smile Izuna offers him doesn’t quite reach his eyes. “Well, maybe I just wanted to help change your mind, for...whoever your soulmate is, be Uchiha or otherwise.”

“Don’t be stupid. You’re not going to change my mind just because you’ve stopped terrorizing me,” Tobirama snaps. “Does that mean you know who my soulmate is?”

Izuna blurts out “yes” and immediately covers his mouth, his eyes wide. He shakes his head and stands up, bolting out of the office before Tobirama can get another question in. The Senju is left alone to wonder what the hell _that_ was all about. 

* * *

“The fuck did you say to my brother?” Madara Uchiha demands, standing in front of Tobirama’s desk with his arms crossed. Said Senju just rolls his eyes and continues filling out the paperwork on his desk. 

“None of your business,” he says coolly, when it’s clear Madara isn’t going away without an answer. 

“None of my - none of my business?!” He demands. “I think I have a fucking right to know when right after you went into his office he signed up for an S Rank mission, you prick! We both know that’s unusual, you’ve seen his mission history. What’d you say to him that made him run away like that?!”

“He signed up for what?” Tobirama’s brow furrows. He’s not sure why, but a pit forms in his stomach. “Not the Kiri mission?”

“ _Yes_ the Kiri mission. Now what the fuck did you say to him,” Madara hisses. “I know it has to do with you.”

“How could you possibly know that?” Tobirama demands, and Madara grits his teeth. 

“Are you fucking with me? Don’t you realize?”

“Realize what?”

“Oh, Kami help me before I kill this man,” Madara mutters, and Tobirama shoots him a glare. 

“All I told him was that...I would rather die than have an Uchiha as a soulmate,” the Senju tries to sound nonchalant. The more he’s had to repeat the phrase said out of anger, the less he’s felt justified in saying it at all. 

He’s got a nagging feeling that Hashirama may have been right. 

Madara’s head snaps up. “You said what.” His tone is flat. 

“I said I’d rather die than have an Uchiha as a soulmate,” Tobirama reluctantly repeats. 

“...we’ve got to go find him,” Madara says, any hint of anger replaced by worry that makes Tobirama feel a bit ill. 

“What do you mean? It’s only been...when did he leave?”

“You really didn’t even notice?” Madara asks, expression unreadable now. “A week. Izuna has been gone for a week.”

“It’s only been a week, then. I’m sure he’s fine. We can’t waste resources or risk jeopardizing the mission just because you want your little brother back in Konoha,” Tobirama says, shaking his head. 

“I don’t want to lose him because of _you_ ,” Madara hisses in response. 

“Why are you even blaming me?! I say things like that all the time, I’ve never been one to hide how I feel about your clan. Why is it _this_ that you think made him run off so suddenly? Maybe he had a falling out with his soulmate or something and he just wanted to get away. I know how important those things are to the Uchiha, even if I find it ridiculous.”

“I’ve never met a more oblivious man in my fucking life,” the Uchiha says incredulously. “How you can be right on the fucking mark and yet so incredibly wrong at the same time is absolutely beyond me.” He shakes his head. “I’ll give it another day or two before organizing a search team, and you’re not going to stop me. Hashirama will approve it and you know it.”

Tobirama glares at him. “Oh fuck you. Get out of my office, Uchiha. I have more important things to do.” 

“Gladly,” Madara mutters, shaking his head again and leaving without another word. 

The pit in Tobirama’s stomach won’t leave, but he decides focusing on paperwork would be a better use of his time right now. 

* * *

So, maybe attempting to break and enter into Izuna’s house to get some sort of clue about what had _really_ caused him to flee had been a bad idea.

Still, he’s here now, and there’s no way he could ethically walk away from this situation.

It appears that Izuna has returned right at the moment Tobirama had planned to sneak into his house. The Uchiha is currently splayed face down on his front porch, blood pooled around him, and obviously Tobirama isn’t going to step over him to break into his house.

He might not like Izuna (surely, he doesn’t LIKE Izuna, that’s not why his chest feels so tight upon the sight), but leaving an ally in such a condition is wrong no matter who they are. Tobirama swallows thickly and kneels down to check if the man even has a pulse. Relief sags his shoulders as he feels one, faint though it may be. “I’ll get you safe,” he promises, not sure why he even bothers as he doubts Izuna can hear him. He lifts the other man up, slinging him over his shoulder, and _runs_ to Hashirama’s house.

* * *

“Where’d you find him?” Hashirama asks, voice surprisingly calm for the situation as he hovers his glowing hands over Izuna’s bleeding stomach. 

“On his front porch.”

“...Why were you at his house? You knew he was on a mission.”

“Call it intuition?” Tobirama offers, smiling awkwardly. No way was he going to admit to his big brother that he had been planning on breaking into Izuna’s house to solve the mystery. Hashirama raises a brow.

“You should probably come up with a better story for Madara once he gets home,” he points out, and Tobirama sighs.

“You’re right.”

“You rushed over here pretty fast,” Hashirama comments idly as he continues to heal the Uchiha’s wounds. “I’d have thought you’d take your time, since you hate the Uchiha so much.”

“I couldn’t just _leave_ him there,” Tobirama frowns, crossing his arms. “Are you implying that I’d allow an ally to die just because of my personal distaste?”

“So you don’t like him?” his brother prods, and Tobirams shifts uncomfortably.

“I didn’t say that,” he mumbles. 

“So you _do_ like him?”

“I didn’t say that either!”

“Hm…” Hashirama hums, mirth in his eyes that Tobirama can’t fathom the possible reason for. “Well, he should be in the clear. I’d start bracing yourself for the fallout.”

“You mean bracing myself for your ridiculous husband?”

Hashirama just offers a cheery grin as said ridiculous husband comes barreling through the door.

* * *

“I got you a coffee,” Tobirama says, unceremoniously shoving it onto Izuna’s desk. The Uchiha stares up at him with a brow raised.

“Why?”

“Because you look tired,” the Senju snaps, crossing his arms. “Drink it or don’t.”

“You even remembered how much cream I like,” Izuna says, examining the offering with a confused expression. 

“Of course I remembered,” Tobirama replies, though he’s not sure what possessed him to say that. His cheeks heat up a bit and he turns away. “Whatever, Uchiha.” He exits the office before he can make a bigger fool of himself, though a quick glance behind shows Izuna’s strange smile.

He tries not to think too much of it.

* * *

“Hey, Tobirama, I finished this paperwork for you,” Izuna says, resting a fairly sizable stack on Tobirama’s desk. The Senju looks up at him in surprise.

“That wasn’t due for another week or so,” he says. 

“Yeah, and?”

“You don’t submit paperwork on time, Uchiha, let alone _early.”_

“You told me this was really important,” Izuna replies, shrugging and smiling.

“You remembered that?” Tobirama’s brow furrows. This isn’t usual Izuna behavior.

“Of course I remembered,” he echoes Tobirama’s comment from last week, brushing their hands together before turning to leave. “Let me know if anything needs fixed with it, alright? I’ll see you later.” He flashes a grin and Tobirama can’t help but offer a small smile in return.

  
  


_Hm._

* * *

“So, how are things with Izuna going?” Hashirama asks as he sips on his cup of tea. Tobirama nearly chokes on his own as he looks up from his brother’s ugly tablecloth.

“What is that supposed to mean?”

Hashirama rubs the back of his neck. “You still don’t get it, huh? Well, I’m not going to be the one to explain it. You’re just going to have to use that brain of yours!”

“What are you _talking_ about?” Tobirama demands, setting his tea cup down, but Hashirama just smiles serenely. 

“Oh, nothing. Why don’t you ask Izuna?” he suggests.

“You clearly know what’s going on.”

“Ah, but I don’t have to tell you the truth!” Hashirama says, and Tobirama glares at him.

“I don’t know what you’re playing at, anija, but I don’t appreciate it,” he mutters, picking up his tea cup once again to sip on it. 

His brother’s expression is almost sympathetic now. “I know you don’t. You’ll figure it out though, I’ve got full faith in you.”

And here, Tobirama had almost forgotten how condescending his older brother could be.

* * *

“I’m sorry for what I said,” Tobirama says from his seat in Izuna’s office as they share a lunch of bento boxes. 

“You’re going to have to be a bit more specific, Tobi,” Izuna points out, covering his mouth as he laughs. “You’ve said a lot of stupid things.”

“I have-” the Senju tries to say ‘not,’ but finds that he can’t. He puffs his cheeks. “I guess I have,” he reluctantly agrees. “But I’m referring to my comment about an Uchiha soulmate and how I would...rather die.” His cheeks flush with a bit of shame as he looks anywhere but at Izuna. “That was ignorant of me to say.”

“Water under the bridge,” Izuna replies cheerfully. 

“Is that why you took that Kiri mission?” Tobirama asks, watching his friend’s reaction carefully (because yes, at this point, even _he_ has to admit that Izuna is his friend). “You were upset about what I said?”

“Well, I…” Izuna shifts in his seat. “Why’d you have to ask me that…” he groans, running a hand through his hair. Tobirama just looks at him expectantly, so he reluctantly continues. “Yes. Of course I was upset. So I left to clear my head.”

“But you chose to go to your house with a grievous wound and not the hospital,” Tobirama says, and Izuna squirms again.

“Tobi…” he whines, drumming his fingers on the desk. “I can’t lie to you, this is so not fair...” he chews on his lip. “I did do that, yes.”

“Why?” Tobirama asks, feeling as though he’s finally approaching an answer for all the strangeness in his life for the past year. 

“Because you said you’d rather die than have an Uchiha as a soulmate,” Izuna says, the drumming of his fingers growing faster.

“But _why_ because I said that? I said plenty of dreadful things about your clan besides that and none of it spurred such a reaction, _”_ Tobirama presses further, setting his lunch aside and leaning in closer, resting his elbows on the desk in front of the other man. 

“Because I thought maybe having your Uchiha soulmate die was better than you finding out and wanting to die yourself,” Izuna blurts out, and he cringes. “For fuck’s sake, you always have to keep digging, don’t you?” he stands up. “And we were just finally getting to be friends. Kami, Tobirama, I’m sorry. I didn’t want to tell you but you just kept asking.” 

Tobirama stares at him incredulously. “Come again?” he asks, feeling a bit faint.

“You said you’d rather die than have an Uchiha as a soulmate,” Izuna mutters. “And being your _Uchiha_ soulmate, I figured I’d just take myself out of the picture for you. Clearly, it didn’t work out, so I changed strategies. I thought...if we could be friends, I’d be happy, y’know?”

“Don’t leave,” the Senju says, and the other man stops in his tracks in front of the door.

“I was just going to give you some space. I can’t imagine you’re happy about this-”

“Who said I’m not happy?”

It’s Izuna’s turn to look incredulous. “What?”

Tobirama stands as well, shifting awkwardly on his feet. “I don’t blame you if you’re not receptive,” he starts, clasping his hands together, “but...would you like to go to dinner with me?”

Izuna stares at him as if he’s sprouted a second head. “Can’t say I expected that,” he says, voice a bit weak.

“I suppose I’ve been falling for you for a few months now without even realizing it,” Tobirama says. “Without even realizing you were my soulmate.”

“It was kind of obvious you didn’t know,” Izuna says, smiling with amusement. “It’s why I was just trying to be your friend. Your company isn’t half bad, especially once you stopped the whole ‘I hate Uchiha’ thing,” he teases.

“Mm, your company got much better once you stopped tormenting me,” Tobirama shoots back. “Were you never going to tell me?”

“Like I said, I was trying to be happy as friends,” the Uchiha replies, rubbing the back of his neck. “I would’ve been okay with that. We Uchiha are pretty sappy about the whole soulmate thing. As long as I’m close to you somehow I’m happy with that.”

Tobirama feels his cheeks warming again. “You really are a sap, aren’t you?” he accuses, and Izuna laughs.

“Guilty as charged,” he says, slinking back to his chair and sinking down into it. “I’ll gladly go to dinner with you tonight. Pretty sure we’ve got to finish lunch first though.”

Tobirama snorts and sits back down as well, unable to contain his smile. “Probably,” he says lightly. “I can’t believe I didn’t realize. I’m starting to understand why my brother was teasing me so mercilessly.”

“We did have a rocky start,” Izuna allows, laughing and leaning forward in his chair. “He shouldn’t have been so mean.”

“I’m supposed to be a genius,” Tobirama grumbles. “I’m sure I looked like an idiot.”

“Aw, it’s not so bad. Most people don’t think you’re an idiot.”

“Thanks, Izuna. I feel much more confident now.”

Izuna flashes him a smile and reaches across the desk to take one of Tobirama’s hands, giving it a little squeeze. “It’s what I’m here for,” he says, expression soft with fondness.

Tobirama doesn’t mind the way a blush creeps across his cheeks this time. 


End file.
